Today I'd like to share an acronym I learned in Junior High basketball camp and how it applies to Personal finance and saving. During Basketball camp at Bennion Jr High we learned how Beef helps us shoot the basketball with greater effectiveness and consistency. The 4 important points to shooting the basketball are:
1. Balance
2. Eyes on the target
3. Elbow straight
4. Follow-through
After consistently applying these 4 steps, I could see my shot getting better. Effective financial planning also requires these 4 steps. First, we must have balance in our plan. What good does emergency savings do if we are driving ourselves in to debt in order to get there. Saving all our money without enjoying today can also lead us to be out of balance (something my wife helps me with). Our Savings plan should include balance across all spending categories.
Second, we need to keep our eyes on the target. What is the target? There are many targets that we should be working towards. Short term goals may include saving a 3 month emergency fund, saving for a vacation, or a new car. Longer goals may include saving for a down payment on a house and of course retirement. So, what difference does it make to keep our eyes on the target? All the difference. Keeping our goals in mind will help us on the path to to great achievement. When we are switching targets all the time the motivation and drive are lost. It's hard to get to a place that we are not thinking about.
Third, Elbow straight. What is this about? In darts, it is important to keep the elbow straight to help get that bulls-eye. So it is with shooting a basketball and Savings. If the elbow is wobbling side to side then we may miss the target by quite a bit. This really represents our actions as we are aiming for our savings goals. We must not waver in our action or implementation of the plan. The biggest help for keeping the elbow straight in saving is making it automatic.
Finally, Follow-through! Stick to your task till it sticks to you. Beginners are many, but enders are few. We need to be part of the few that stick to our task as we work toward our savings goals. We see what happens to those that don't completely follow through with their shot in basketball. The crowd doesn't let them forget about the "air ball" after the ball comes up short. This is not how we want to end up in our ultimate of savings goals.
So, remember to include B.E.E.F in your Savings!
